For the Tandoori Chicken;
| Boneless Chicken | 1 KG |
| Hung Curd | 300 GMS |
| Red Chilli Powder | 1 and ½ TBSP |
| Turmeric Powder | 1 TSP |
| Coriander Powder | 1 TSP |
| Cumin Powder | 1 TSP |
| Salt | 2 TSP |
| Sugar | ½ TSP |
| Melted Butter | 25 GMS |
| Ginger Paste | 1 TBSP |
| Garlic Paste | 1 TBSP |
| Coal | 1 |
| Ghee | 1 TSP |
For the Gravy;
| Onion | 1 - Diced |
| Garlic | 6-8 Cloves- Diced |
| Ginger | 1 Inch- Diced |
| Tomatoes | 4 Big- Diced |
| Chopped Ginger | 1 TBSP |
| Clove | 3 |
| Green Cardamom | 3 |
| Cinnamon | 1- 1 Inch Stick |
| Dried Bay Leaf | 1 |
| Black Peppercorns | 1 TBSP |
| Red Chilli Powder | 2 TBSP |
| Cashew | 10-12 Pieces |
| Butter | 30 GMS |
| Water | 400 ML |
| Cream | 4 TBSP |
| Kasuri Methi/ Dried Fenugreek Leaves | 1 and ½ TBSP |
| Refined Oil | 2 TSP |
| Ghee | 1 TSP |
| Coal | 1 |
Butter chicken is a relatively new dish in India. However, it has gained popularity all over the world as a famous Indian Dish. It was invented post-independence. It is said that, when the restaurants in Punjab started having a lot of leftover tandoori chicken, the owners thought of various ways of utilizing them in a way where it won’t turn it dry (as they were already cooked in the tandoor and cooking the chicken again would overcook and dry them out) but moist. That is when they gave birth to Butter chicken.
A day-old tandoor chicken thrown in a smooth tomato gravy and lathered with loads of cream and butter. The result was quite spectacular and went really well with Rotis and Naans.
Well my husband (for his love for south Indian cuisine) prefers having it with ghee rice. The combination might seem to be really odd and rich. But it works well too!
Preparation:
STEP 1- Marinate the chicken with ginger garlic paste, hung curd, salt, sugar, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder and coriander powder. Pour the melted butter on top and coat the chicken nicely with the butter. Keep it in the fridge for at least an hour.
You can substitute chicken with paneer for the vegetarian version.
STEP 2- After an hour, take the chicken out of the fridge. Keep it at room temperature for at least 15 mins.
STEP 3- After 15 mins, place a steel bowl in the middle of the marinated chicken. Light a small cube of coal and place it in the bowl. Pour 1 TSP of hot melted ghee on top of the burning coal. Once you see smoke coming out, cover the marinated chicken with a lid. This will give a good smoky flavor to the chicken. Keep the bowl covered for at least 10 mins.
STEP 4- Meanwhile, in a saucepan, pour 1 TSP of refined oil along with 1 TBSP of butter. The refined oil will stop the butter from burning. After 10 secs, add the diced aromatics, onion, ginger, garlic, and tomatoes. Add the whole spices, cloves, green cardamoms, cinnamon, black peppercorns, bay leaf along with 1 TBSP of red chilli powder, salt and sugar. Sauté’ everything.
STEP 5- After 1 min, add the cashews and 1 TBSP of butter. Pour 400 ML of water and let it come to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, reduce the flame to low and cover the saucepan with a lid. Let it cook for 15 mins. After 15 mins turn off the flame and let it cool.
STEP 6- Time to charr the marinated chicken cubes.
Now, remove the lid from the marinated chicken. Mix the chicken one last time nicely in the marinade and put it on a skewer or a wooden stick as shown in the video. Keep the leftover marinade aside. We’ll use this later.
STEP 7- Take a skewer at a time and hold it on top of the flame to get a charr on the chicken cubes. Each skewer should take about a min to cook. Once they are done leave them on a plate. Take the chicken pieces out of the skewers and keep it aside.
STEP 8- Next we move onto the gravy. Once the gravy cools down blend everything together to get a smooth consistency. If you still find lumps you can strain it through a strainer as shown in the video.
STEP 9- In a saucepan, pour 1/2 TSP of refined oil along with 1 TBSP of butter. Add 2 TSP of red chilli powder and 1 TBSP of chopped ginger. Sauté it for about 20 secs and then pour the excess leftover marinade. Sauté it for about a min.
STEP 10- Pour the strained gravy into this saucepan and let it come to a boil.
STEP 11- Once it comes to a boil, reduce the flame to low and add the charred chicken pieces. Let it cook for 6 mins on low flame.
STEP 12- Pour the cream. Mix everything well. Add the kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves) and cover it with a lid. Let it cook for another min before turning off the flame.
STEP 13- Again, repeat the smoking process. Place a steel bowl at the middle of the cooked butter chicken. Light a coal. Place the hot coal in the bowl and pour 1 TSP of hot melted ghee on top of the burning coal. Once you see smoke coming out cover the butter chicken with a lid. This will give an extra smoky flavor to the chicken dish. Keep the saucepan covered for at least 5 mins.
This step is totally optional.
STEP 14- Your butter chicken is ready to be served.